A Moment With The Dragon
by Original Dark Angel
Summary: First Installment of the Silver Eyes Trilogy. Oneshot. After saving Hermione, Draco is brought to the Burrow by Harry and Ron. Ginny is the first to see him and it leads to the poignant question of trust. Complete.


Disclaimer: Anything you recognize is the wonderful work of J.K. Rowling.

A/N: This is one of my first HP fics, set anytime after OotP, so Blaise is a girl according to this story. It's the prequel to Reunion of a Family and it stemmed from the quote below, which a friend gave me in art class a few years ago.

"_Fear the man who fights for love. Tremble in fear of the man that fights for love lost."_

Ginny was sitting on the porch swing, when Harry and Ron returned from rescuing Hermione. She was the first to see them bring Draco Malfoy home, not as a prisoner, but as a friend. Ron carried Hermione past her, but Harry paused to talk to Draco. "Wait here with Ginny, Draco. I'll go clear the way."

"Harry, what are you doing, bringing him here?" Ginny cried.

Harry grabbed her arm and pulled her aside. "He rescued Hermione from his dad. Refused to become a death eater and refused to kill a muggle born witch. And it cost him his girlfriend. If it had been anyone else who Lucius had killed, I'd say it was a trick, but Blaise is dead, and you've seen him around her. There is no doubt in my mind that he loved her, and all he had to do to keep her alive was kill Hermione and take the Dark Mark. He didn't." Harry turned and went inside. As soon as he was gone, Draco collapsed on the step, head in his hands.

Ginny approached him cautiously. "What's with you, Malfoy?"

"My name is Draco."

"Fine, what's with you, Draco?"

"I got my girlfriend killed, Ginny! Do you mind if I try to absorb that?"

"Yes, I mind. Harry said that your father killed her. That means that it wasn't your fault," she said sharply.

"I let it happen." He looked down. Weighing her options, Ginny sighed and sat down next to him. She brought a hand to his cheek, and turned his face toward her.

"It's not your fault. Your Dad killed her and you couldn't have stopped him." Her hazel eyes bored into his silver ones. "It's not your fault. I'm sorry Blaise died. I know you're upset, but this wasn't your fault," she whispered, brushing his hair out of his eyes with her fingertips.

He managed a half smile. "Keep saying that, Ginny, and maybe someday I'll believe it."

"You saved Hermione. That was pretty brave of you. It makes you a hero, not a villain. I'm sure Blaise would want you to remember that. She'd be proud of her heroic boyfriend."

"I didn't do anything heroic. After seeing my father kill Blaise, I grabbed Hermione and ran, out of my head with fear. I was just lucky that Ron and Harry were around the corner or he would have caught us in a heartbeat. I didn't do anything brave."

"You're wrong. You did two things that were brave. You chose not to obey your father and you took Hermione with you." Draco opened his mouth to contradict her, but she held up one hand. "We can argue this point all night, but I won't change my mind. I'm stubborn that way. You could have obeyed your father. You didn't. You could have left Hermione there. You didn't." Ginny heard raised voices inside, and she tried to distract him, so he couldn't hear the awful names Fred was calling him; understandably still angry over the loss of his twin. "Tell me about Blaise."

His eyes took on a soft glow. "She was so amazing. Dark curly hair and eyes the color of the twilight sky. She was so small, even shorter than you, pretty, and I loved making her smile. She loved pretty things, and I gave her this silver locket for Christmas, and she put a picture of us laughing in the frame. I remember sitting on that rock under the waterfall with her that day. We fell asleep out there and had to sneak back into the castle. Got the worst talking-to from our portrait, Syn Trunt, for it." He turned thoughtful and serious. Her greatest ambition in life was to be with me, or she wouldn't have talked the Sorting Hat into placing her in Slytherin." He looked out over the backyard. "She's dead," he whispered softly. "Ginny, could you hang onto something for me?" He pulled a ring from the pocket of his robes. "I was going to ask her to marry me tomorrow. When the War is over, I'm going to bury it at her grave, but I don't think I can look at it until then." Ginny wordlessly held out her hand, and felt the cold metal dropped in her palm. It was gold with roses etched into the band and an opal stone. It was a pity that Blaise had never seen it, because it would have charmed any girl.

"Draco, come in and get something to eat." Draco broke their eye contact and started to stand, responding to Harry's summons.

"Draco?" He stopped and looked down at her. "Why are your eyes silver?"

"Silver eyes are a Malfoy trait, Ginny. Family legend says that they were a gift from a dragon. Hence my name." He reached out to ruffle her hair, but she shook her head.

"I still don't trust you," she warned.

"Good. I haven't earned it." His tone was straightforward without a hint of resentment.

Ginny softened. "Give it time, Dragon Boy. You will."

The End.


End file.
